"DRN" 2006 Obituary

DRNASIN o@ca.on.middlesex_county.london.london_free_press 2006-11-29 published
Special Investigations Unit probes Croatian war hero's death
By Canadian Press, Wed., November 29, 2006
Toronto -- A makeshift memorial stands at a northwest Toronto
intersection for a 32-year-old Croatian war hero whose death
is being probed by the Special Investigations Unit.
Jasen DRNASIN -- his country's first graduate from the U.S. Military
Academy at West Point -- was taken to hospital November 12 after
an altercation on a city bus.
DRNASIN died yesterday in hospital and his father, Anton, believes
his son's heart stopped because of excessive use of pepper spray
during a confrontation with Toronto Transit Commission special
constables and police officers.
About 100 people gathered at the roadside memorial of candles
and flowers on the weekend in a show of support for
DRNASIN.
Friends say he was also a Canadian citizen and served in the
Canadian military when he was 16 or 17. He then moved to Croatia
to fight in its civil war in the early 1990s, before graduating
from West Point in 2000.
The Special Investigations Unit is also probing the death of
a 33-year-old man who fell from a downtown Toronto hotel balcony.
Police received a call from an emotionally distraught man at
the Delta Chelsea Hotel around 5: 30 a.m. yesterday.

DRNASIN o@ca.on.york_county.toronto.globe_and_mail 2006-11-28 published
Croatian army hero dies after scuffle with officers
By Omar EL
AKKAD,
PageA20
A former Croatian army officer who became involved in an altercation
with Toronto Transit Commission and police officers two weeks
ago has succumbed to his injuries.
Jasen DRNASIN, 32, died yesterday afternoon at Humber River Regional
Hospital, the province's Special Investigations Unit confirmed.
He had been in the hospital -- in critical condition -- since
the incident.
Mr. DRNASIN became a military hero in Croatia after becoming
the first citizen of that country to graduate from the prestigious
West Point military academy in the U.S.
That fame turned to infamy a few years ago after Mr.
DRNASIN
was charged in Croatia with stabbing his girlfriend.
TheSpecialInvestigations Unit continues to investigate Mr.
DRNASIN's
death.

DRNASIN o@ca.on.york_county.toronto.toronto_star 2006-11-28 published
Pepper-sprayed Croatian soldier dies
Friend who says
DRNASIN was 'black and blue' after altercation
on Toronto Transit Commission bus doubts that spray alone was
the cause of his death
By Phinjo GOMBU,
StaffReporter
A Croatian soldier who was pepper-sprayed by Toronto Transit
Commission special constables following an altercation on a bus
this month has died.
Jasen DRNASIN, 32, a Croatian war hero and the country's first
graduate from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, was taken
to hospital on November 12 in critical condition after an altercation
on a bus in the Eglinton Ave. W. and Royal York Rd. area.
DRNASIN reportedly showed signs of improvement a few days later
but died yesterday afternoon around 2: 40 p.m. at Humber Regional
Hospital.
DRNASIN's father Anton said earlier that his son suffered from
post-traumatic stress as a result of military service in Croatia.
He said he had been told that his son's heart may have stopped
because of the excessive use of pepper spray.
He said at the time he was angry and did not think his son deserved
to be pepper-sprayed but has not spoken publicly since.
At least seven Toronto police officers also responded to the
disturbance. The incident is under investigation by the province's
Special Investigations Unit, which probes circumstances involving
police and civilians that result in death or serious injury.
Friends of the Croatian-born
DRNASIN, who was also a Canadian
citizen but moved back to Croatia as a teenager, said they don't
believe he died just as a result of being pepper-sprayed.
"This isn't a case of someone having a bad reaction to pepper
spray," said Ranko
PLEJIC, who has known
DRNASIN since he was
10 and was his soccer coach.
When PLEJIC -- who along with others held a vigil for
DRNASIN
last week -- spoke to the Star he said
DRNASIN was "black and
blue over every part of his body."
"The whole pepper spray story, I think, is secondary. This man
was severely beaten, he's actually missing parts of flesh on
his throat. This man was beaten… His bladder catheter is strictly
pouring out blood. He's unrecognizable," said
PLEJIC.
PLEJIC also said that while
DRNASIN may have gone to fight in
Croatia as a young man, he wanted to stress that he remained
a Canadian.
He said DRNASIN also served in the Canadian military when he
was 16 or 17.
Not long after his military service here
DRNASIN moved to Croatia
to fight in its civil war in the early 1990s. He later went on
to graduate from West Point in 2000, the first Croatian soldier
to do so.
A year later, things went tragically wrong when he was charged
with stabbing his girlfriend Tanja Milanovic several times while
under the influence of drugs.
The case, according to Croatian news reports, brought out in
the open stories about rampant drug use in the Croatian army
during the preceding decade.
PLEJIC said that
DRNASIN, an engineer by training, had been back
in Canada since September and was looking to make some money
here.
DRNASIN's wife, from whom he was estranged, and his 18-month-old
daughter flew to Toronto from Croatia after he was hospitalized.